A Michael Broad Blog
In a nation long celebrated for its love of dogs, a quiet revolution is unfolding. Cats are rapidly rising in popularity across the UK, and if current trends continue, they may soon outnumber dogs as the country’s most beloved pet. A Surge in Cat Ownership Recent data from leading pet retailer Jollyes reveals a …
Here is why your cat is allegedly starting to look like your dog (and vice versa). Recent studies suggest that domestic cats and dogs are exhibiting increasingly similar physical traits, a phenomenon largely attributed to human influence through domestication. This convergence in appearance and behavior is rooted in the concept of “domestication syndrome,” a …
I’ll quote from Dr Desmond Morris’s book CATWATCHING: “A description of the impact of a severe city storm, written by Jonathan Swift in 1710, supports this view [the death by drowning of stray cats and dogs after a storm in cities where there was poor drainage]: ‘Now from all parts the swelling kennels flow, …
My infographic summarizes a report in The Times newspaper yesterday (23rd January 2024 written by Rhys Blakeley) of a survey on the possible winter blues suffered by some canines. I think it fair to say that what is said about companion dogs may also in some households apply to domestic cats. There is probably …
The report is that Delhi is suffering its worst smog in 40 years. Of course, the story concerns how people are suffering. But what about the pet dogs and cats living in that sprawling city? The airborne pollution is choking the city. The Scottish historian William Dalrymple has lived in Delhi for 40 years …
Anyone who lives with a cat or dog and is truly concerned about their welfare will hate fireworks or they should do in my honest opinion. I detest fireworks. And it is not only because I’m concerned about my cat. It’s because they are noisy. I don’t understand why people like to listen to …
Left alone, nature operates natural selection, a process which leads to cleverer animals surviving more successfully. This led to the evolution of larger brained animals and ultimately to the dominance of humans over all animals. But for dogs selective breeding has interrupted this process with a research study deciding that dogs with smaller brains …
Under the law in the UK, and in most other countries, cats and dogs are regarded as inanimate objects; in old-fashioned English they are “chattels”. To a couple who are divorcing they are far more than chattels. They are family members and there is often, nearly always, a close emotional bond between animal and …
